Christ’s Death and Resurrection-Verses
Specific Info
The true meaning
of Christ’s death and resurrection is love (Ro 5:6-8). The unfathomable love
our Heavenly Father had for us before the beginning of time (Eph 1:4-5). A love
that created us, a love that made a sacrificial plan of salvation for our sins
(Eph 2:4). A love so great that our Heavenly Father would have His only
begotten Son die in place of us (Jn 3:16). The great
love of Jesus to do His Father’s will (Jn 14:31), to
become one of us (Jn 6:38). A love that would make
Jesus lay down His life for us (Jn 15:13), to die as
atonement for our sins (1Jn 4:9-10). The important part of Christ’s death for
our sins is not the physical pain Christ had to endure (1Pe 2:21-24), but the
spiritual reason our Savior died for us, because He loved us (Ro
5:6-8, 8:35-39). And those who have Jesus in their hearts cannot help but love
their Savior back, willingly following His commands, gladly living as our
Master would have us live, and loving others as ourselves (Lk:27-28, Jn 14:23).
The celebration of
Holy Week and Easter commemorates the events leading up to Christ’s death and
resurrection, and the beginning of God’s New Covenant with us (Heb 8:8-13).
These events happened during the annual festivals of Passover and The Feast of
Unleavened Bread (Lk 22:1). These Old Covenant
ceremonies were required by God and held annually in Jerusalem in either March or April (Ex
12:14-15, 24-27). God instituted these ceremonies as He freed Israel from 400
years of slavery to the Egyptians (Ex 12:17). The Lord put plagues on the
Egyptians so they would free His chosen nation of Israel from them (Ex 11:1). The
last plague was the death of all the firstborn sons in Egypt (Ex
12:12). To protect the Israelite’s first born from this plague, God told them
to choose a lamb without blemish on the 10th day of what was to
become their first month (Ex 12:3). On the 14th day of that same
month, at twilight, they were to slaughter the lamb (Ex 12:6), marking their doors
with its blood so God would “passover” their homes,
their firstborn sons would then be spared (Ex 12:7, 13). After this plague
occurred Israel was set free and hurriedly left Egypt, eating unleavened bread
as they traveled, not having time to use yeast (Ex 12:33-34). The Lord
commanded them annually to celebrate the Passover on the same day it occurred,
14th day of first month, followed by the Feast of Unleavened Bread
which would begin on the 15th day of the 1st month and
would last for seven days (Nu 28:16-17). During the
Feast of Unleavened Bread no yeast was to be eaten or in their possession (Dt 16:4). They were to eat as they did in their flight from
Egypt.
The first and last days of this Festival were to be Sabbaths (Nu 28:18, 25). Our Lord wanted the Israelites to always
remember their bondage and that He alone saved them from captivity (Ex 12:17,
27). But our Heavenly Father also wanted to use these celebrations as
illustrations of the Messiah who would come as the Lamb, until these
celebrations fulfilled His plan of salvation through Jesus (Rev 5:12-13). A
plan devised before creation (Rev 13:8), promised to us when Adam and Eve first
sinned (Gen 3:15), and completed when Jesus became the New Covenant Passover
lamb to save us (1Cor 5:7). Jesus became the Passover lamb, with no blemishes,
no sins (1Pe 1:19). Our Savior was sacrificed for our sins, willingly died in
our place (Ac 8:32-35). Our Heavenly Father can now “passover”
any transgressions covered by the blood of Christ (Rev 7:14-15), forgiving our
sins, remembering them no more (Heb 10:10-18). Jesus also instituted the Lord’s
Supper, offering His body and blood to replace the lamb as our Passover Supper
of life (Matt 26:26-29). Jesus is and always will be the Lamb of God who takes
all of our sins away (Jn 1:29, 26). Jesus is Christ,
the promised Messiah of the Heavenly Father who saves all believers from sin
(Ro 6:23). Jesus is the New Covenant of grace which allows all believers to be
saved (Eph 2:4-7, Tit 3:7). But Jesus is more, Jesus is the Son of God (Lk 22:70, Mk 1:1, 3:11), and on the third day He arose from
the dead (Lk 9:22). Jesus is alive, He has risen
indeed (Matt 28:5-7). But we must go farther than that. Just as Israel
was set free from Egyptian rule, we also have been freed. Christ has freed us
from the power of sin (Ro 6:18, 1Jn 1:7). He has set us free from the power of
Satan (Ro 16:20, 1Jn 3:8), our sinful flesh (Ro 8:9), the evil of the world
(Gal 1:4). He has set us free from the fear of death (1Co 15:55-57, Heb 2:15).
He has set us free from the threat of eternal damnation in Hell (Ro 5:9, Rev
6:16). He has freed us from all ceremonial laws and regulations. We need not worry about religious
festivals, new moon celebrations or the regular Sabbath (Col 2:16). We no longer need a priest or
anyone else to approach God for us, Christ is our mediator (1Ti 2:5, Heb
12:24). We can go directly, anytime, to Jesus, our eldest brother, our best
friend, and talk with Him, have our sins forgiven by Him (Eph 3:12, Heb 4:16).
We are free from worry (Matt 6: 25-34), for our risen Redeemer has promised to
prepare a place in Heaven for all believers (Jn
14:2). This is what Christianity is all about. Faith, love and hope in a risen
Savior (1Thes 1:3) who has set us free to be Children of God (Jn 1:12-13). And the greatest of these is love (1Co 13:13).
May the love of Jesus Christ remain in our hearts forever.
All God’s plans were made before creation
(Tit 1:2) and it is easy to notice the little things that fit perfectly into
place, which made it possible for Christ to die for our salvation (1Cor 15:3),
to arise as the Son of God (Ro 6:9). The situation at the time, Rome’s
occupation of Israel, the Jewish Church trying to remain as a functioning body
and not be destroyed by the Roman oppressors, made the perfect background for
Christ’s crucifixion. The church’s leadership was trying to keep their people
from striking out against the hated Romans, scared of Roman reprisals which
would strip power from the Jewish religious leaders (Jn
11:48). The High Priest and other leaders of the Sanhedrin believed it was
better for one man die, than have Rome turn on the whole nation (Jn 11:49). Killing Jesus would bring political peace,
stability, removing a self proclaimed Messiah that many incorrectly believed would
set them free from Roman oppression (Lk 22:52). But
Jesus was not trying to establish a physical kingdom here on earth (Jn 18:36). Jesus was the true Son of God (Matt 26:63-64),
the Messiah who came to establish His Father’s Spiritual Kingdom
once more (Lk 17:21). Jesus came as atonement for our
sins (Ro 3:24-25), so believers could become holy (1Pe 2:5), could be children
of God once more (Eph 1:5). Our Savior’s battle is not for physical things, but
is for our souls (Mt 10:28, 16:24-28), trying to push out all evil so He alone
can live in our hearts (Eph 3:17).
Jesus had raised Lazarus from the grave in
Bethany (Jn 11:1-44). Word of this miracle had
spread, Jesus’ notoriety was at its highest and growing (Jn
11:45-47). This made Jesus a serious threat to the Church leadership, they had
to respond, they wanted to kill Him (Mk 14:1). The
chief priests also wanted to kill Lazarus so there would be no miracle (Jn 12:10). But they had to be careful not to stir up the
crowds who supported Jesus and would be coming for the Passover and Feast of
Unleavened Bread celebrations (Mk 14:2). The chief priests eagerly accepted the
offer of Judas to help capture Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (Matt
26:14-15, Mk 14:10-11). Judas would now be looking for the first opportunity to
turn Jesus over to them (Matt 26:16).
Jesus had avoided His enemies by going away
to Ephraim which was near the desert (Jn 11:54). Here
Jesus would not be caught prematurely, our Savior could die as the lamb of the
Passover celebration (1Pe 1:19). Jesus avoided Jerusalem on the regular Sabbath before
Passover, for the chief priests had many watching for Him (Jn
11:57). Jesus came out of seclusion on Sunday Nisan 9 by going to Bethany, where He was
well known, where His most famous miracle had been performed, to be with
friends and believers in Him (12:1). Many of these believers would be at Jerusalem for His
triumphant entry riding a donkey the next day, Monday Nissan 10 (Jn 12:12). They would also get the word around so Jesus
would be accepted, cheered while being chosen as the Passover Lamb of the
people (Jn 12:17). Yet this entry on a donkey meant
Jesus was claiming to be the Messiah (Mt 21:4-5, Zec
9:9), a claim which would infuriate the Jewish leaders even more (Matt 21:15).
Just as the Passover Lamb had to be tested, it could have no blemishes, so
Jesus must be tested by the people, the Pharisees, the Chief Priests, and all
the leadership of the church (Matt 16:21, Mk 8:31). Their accusations would
keep getting more severe until the end (Mk 15:55-59). They would try and make
Jesus an imposter, someone who did not know the law, someone who should be
killed for teaching against the Word of God, blaspheming God’s holy name (Mk
14:63-64), opposing Caesar (Jn 19:12). Jesus
withstood all testing, some believed in Him, others still refused to believe
even with the all miracles He had performed (Jn
12:37-40). Jesus on Preparation night, Nissan 14, the night before the Passover
Lamb was to be eaten, ate His last meal with the disciples. Jesus initiated His
death by telling Judas to go and get the guards who would capture Him (Jn 13:21-30). Jesus was in control of when He would die,
the same time as the Passover lamb, which Jesus would replace, would become
(1Cor 5:7). Then Jesus offered His own body and blood in the Lord’s Supper as
the Passover Lamb, for us to eat, to drink, replacing the Passover lamb forever
(Matt 26:26-29, see Lord’s Supper). Later that night Jesus had to face the most
agonizing test He would ever face, to follow His Father’s will and be crucified
for the sins of the world in the morning (Matt 26:39, 42, Lk
22 42-44). It was more than the physical punishment He would suffer. It was
having the sins of the world placed on His shoulders, dying with everyone’s
sins, as a replacement sinner for all believers which would be the most painful
(2Cor 5:21, 1Jn 2:2). The Heavenly Father hates sin,
would reject Jesus, forsake Him, for the sins He bore as our Savior physically
died (Matt 27:46, Mk 15:34). But as night turns into day, so Christ’s pain
turned to glory for He endured the cross, physically dying to defeat death,
saving all who would ever believe in their Savior (Ro 5: 9-11, 1Ti 1:15). When
Christ died the ground shook, dead believers arose from their graves (Matt
27:51-53). The curtains in the temple that kept all from going directly to God
were torn (Mk 15:38), they are needed no more, all can now go directly their
Savior (Eph 3:12, Heb 4:16). Guards who crucified Jesus trembled with fear,
knowing they had crucified the Son of God (Matt 27:54). Though Christ’s
physical body was dead, was laid in the grave, His Spirit never died (Rev
22:12-13). Spiritually Jesus ascended into the Kingdom of God
to announce His victory over sin and Satan (Lk
23:46). Spiritually Jesus gave all redeemed souls under the Old Covenant laws
complete forgiveness, and brought them to their eternal home in Heaven
(Heb9:15). Spiritually Jesus welcomed home to Paradise
the thief on the cross, the sinner who had found faith while dying with our
Savior (Lk 23:42-43). Spiritually Jesus lectured
those in Hell (1Pe 3:19). Then just as Jesus had foretold, on the third day
from His death (Matt 16:21, Lk 9:22), the Heavenly
Father would restore Christ’s spirit into His dead body (Gal 1:1), making it
physically alive once more (Lk 24:46-48). Jesus
physical resurrection was announced to the world by a violent earth quake as an
angel rolled away the stone to the grave (Matt 28:1-3). The guards at the tomb
were so scared that they became like dead men (Matt 28:4). Jesus showed Himself
alive to the women (Matt 8:5-10), to Mary Magdalene (Jn
20:13-18), then to the men on the road to Emmaus (Lk
24:13-33), to Peter (Lk 24:34) then to His disciples
(Lk 24:36-49). Before Jesus ascended into Heaven over
500 hundred would see their risen Savior (1Cor 15:3-8). Christ has risen indeed
(1Cor 15:20)! As Christ died and was raised from the dead, so to will all
believers (Ro 8:11), death has been defeated (Ro 8:2), we will live in Paradise with our Lord forever (Rev 2:7).
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